I would Like to give you a little pause for thought! And when ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret shall recompense thee.7 And in praying use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.8 Be not therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.9 After this manner therefore pray ye. Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so on earth.11 Give us this day our daily bread.12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.13 And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen of men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward.17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face;18 that thou be not seen of men to fast, but of thy Father who is in secret: and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall recompense thee.19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal:20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:21 for where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also.22 The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is the darkness!Genesis three is not a place where we would expect grace. It is in the context of judgment after the Fall that the LORD God curses the serpent. Adam and Eve hear God speaking to the shining one. It is not a direct promise to Adam and Eve, but a word of judgment to Satan (Rev. 12:9; 20:2). He says to the serpent, And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel (Gen. 3:15).Jesus Christ went to the cross and died on our behalf to crush Satan (Hebrews 2:9–15).Satan thought that he had won in the battle over the Son of God at Calvary, but the full weight of the crucifixion came down on him three days later when Christ rose from the dead. The all wise sovereign God fulfilled His eternal purpose of redemption. The resurrection faith is at the center of God’s provision of salvation for sinners. In the crushing of the head of the serpent, deliverance was promised.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Feb 2014 08:10:54 +0000
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